"The reason why many poor souls
have so little heat of joy in their hearts is that they have so little light of
Gospel knowledge in their mind. The further a soul stands from the light of
truth, the further he must be from the heat of comfort."
-William Gurnall (1617 - 1679)
WHAT IS THE GOSPEL? The message of the Gospel commences with man's problem, continues with God's solution and concludes with an offer to respond.
MAN'S PROBLEM: The Bible describes man's problem in one word: sin. However, even apart from the Bible, it is painfully obvious that the world we live in is far from perfect. C.S. Lewis, the former atheist turned Christian and author of the Chronicles of Narnia series wrote this in his book Mere Christianity: "These, then, are the two main points I wanted to make. First, that human beings...have this curious idea that they ought to behave in a certain way, and cannot really get rid of it. Secondly, that they do not in fact behave in that way. These two facts are the foundation of all clear thinking about ourselves and the universe we live in." I think most people know that what C.S. Lewis is saying is true. Something isn't right. And the problem is not simply with our circumstances or our society. The real problem is with our hearts. We are the problem. I don't know where the evidence of that problem exists in your life. Sometimes it shows up in broken relationships, depression or disease. For some it shows up in passions such as anger, jealousy or lust. Others, like the Pharisees in Jesus' day, it shows up in the illusion we have that we are really good people after all - at least not as bad as some. God's expectation for man is simple: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your mind, and love your neighbor as himself." That summarizes God's Law - and none of us had kept it - not even for a single day.
The Bible puts it plainly:
"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? (Jeremiah 17:9)"
"There is none who does good, no not one (Psalm 14:3)."
"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23)."
GOD'S ANSWER: If God does nothing, we have no hope. Mankind, in the situation described above, is utterly helpless and hopeless without Him. God is holy. As such He has a right to expect holiness from His creatures. God is just. As such He cannot simply ignore the law and our failure to meet it. The answer to this problem is the cross of Jesus Christ. God sent His Son to bear the punishment of our sins. That is what the cross is all about. The cross of Christ was not a tragic end to the life of an otherwise good man. The cross was God's plan, and Christ's plan for our salvation.
But even the cross alone can't save us. The Bible describes the cross as an "offense" to man. The very notion that our problem is so horrible that it required the cross makes us uncomfortable and angry. If we are really going to be saved, God must change our hearts. To put it in Jesus' words "you must be born again." By nature we are dead to spiritual things. God must give us new life. Salvation is, therefore, entirely of the Lord. Our good works cannot save us. Our prayers do not save us. Going to church and reading the Bible do not save us. God saves. It is all of grace. That is what the Bible says: "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast." We cannot earn our salvation. Once received, it cannot be lost. It is all of GRACE and grace alone.
The Bible does not present Jesus Christ as one of many ways to be saved. God will not save some through Christ, and some through some other way, other religion, or idea. Jesus said "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me (John 14:6)."
WHAT MUST I DO? Everyone confronted with the Gospel has two choices.
On the one hand, you may simply ignore it and continue on as though it had no relevance or importance to you. People do this all the time. They hear, maybe they pause, but ultimately they just keep on going with life the way they want to. They don't want to change. If they were honest, the significance of the Gospel scares them. It would mean the intrusion of an entirely new set of priorities - God's priorities. And so most will simply go on with life they way they always have. The Bible, in fact, predicts this. Jesus said "Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many (Matt. 7:13)." Most will simply keep going in their own way, doing what is right in their own eyes. Proverbs says "there is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death (Proverbs 14:12)."
On the other hand - some will have read these things and be ready to change. You are finally inclined to fully agree with God about your sins. You acknowledge the Lord has a right to hate and punish your sins, and you now hate them too. What should you do? The answer that the Bible gives is clear: "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved (Acts 16:31)." Stop running from Him. Follow the instruction of the O.T. prophet Hosea who said "Come, let us return to the Lord; for He has torn us that He may heal us; He has struck us down, and He will bind us up (Hosea 6:1)." Now really is the right time. Don't put it off. What possible good can come from waiting? You can never be more "prepared" to repent and believe. The Lord doesn't want your preparations. Believe on Jesus Christ. Trust Him. Put your faith in Him.
So what will it be? Will you be like most, who simply go on and try to put these things out of your mind a bit longer? Or will you surrender this foolish and losing battle with God and receive His gracious provision for your soul in Jesus Christ?
WHAT NEXT? That depends on your response. If you have rejected the Gospel, God's good-news for you, then what comes next is any number of days, months and years. And then the judgment. "It is appointed for man to die once, and then comes the judgment (Hebrews 9:27)."
But if...if...you have turned your life over to Him who gave you life, then everything is different now. Everything. "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come (2 Corinthians 5:17)." You haven't begun a new chapter in your life. You have been given a whole new life. You will have trials and troubles for sure. But now "greater is He who is in you, than he who is in the world."
If that is true for you...I would love to hear about it.
Cordially in Christ,
Jason
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